Discover Indie Science Fiction Bookshops

A weekly series featuring great independent e-bookshops, this time it's Science Fiction.

Libreture

Lots of publishers sell through Amazon, Kobo, iBooks and other large e-bookshops. But readers may not know that many of those same publishers also sell their books through independent retailers or direct from their own websites.

Each week, this new series promotes a selection of bookshops, centred around a particular genre. We're continuing this second week with Science Fiction.

Tor's reasoning at the time was that their science fiction readers were more likely to prefer DRM-free e-books:

“It’s clear to us that this is what our customers want,” said senior editor Patrick Nielsen Hayden. “We see it in the success of SF publishers like Baen and Angry Robot that have preceded us in going DRM-free.

Outside of the Big Six, many science fiction publishers have been DRM-free for a while. As Hayden mentioned above, Baen and Angry Robot have been extremely successful selling books without DRM. Rebellion started selling DRM-free in 2006, and even smaller publishers and bookshops have been at it even longer. Proving Tor's point that the science fiction audience are the right people to buy DRM-free e-books.

Both Aqueduct and Phoenix Pick have been around since the 90s, judging by their websites, but the fact they're still around says a lot about their books and their publishing skills.

Science Fiction publishers are another genre that have found success selling direct, but many of them seem to be shooting themselves in the foot at the same time. They continue to push their customers towards Amazon, instead of really getting behind their direct-sales bookshops. Only by really directing customers to their own shop can they be truly independent.

The Science Fiction Bookshops

There are so many bookshops that sell science fiction titles that I had to limit my selection a little. I've concentrated on those that are predominantly science fiction bookshops. The list is still HUUUUGE, but you might get a bit more out of it this way.

So here's my selection of Science Fiction bookshops to look out for. They all sell DRM-free e-books.

An e-book imprint of Solaris books. With categories ranging from Apocalypse to Zombies and Gore, you know what you're getting from Rebellion. Along with lots of Judge Dredd titles, they also stock the latest by Juliet E. McKenna.

Angry Robot Books only offer books in ePub format, but have a firm belief in the strength of DRM-free publishing. If you're happy to convert the books to Mobi yourself, for use on a Kindle, you should be okay. A large selection from a variety of genre publishers, including plenty of science-fiction; fantasy; steampunk; alternative history, as well as some really interesting magazines.

For twenty years, Tachyon have been publishing award winning smart science fiction, fantasy, and literary fiction. Famous for their anthologies, such as The Sword and Sorcery Anthology, Lovecraft's Monsters and Treasury of the Fantastic. Their e-books are available in ePub, MOBI and PDF formats.

Apex is a small press that publishes works of science fiction, horror, fantasy and non-fiction. At the moment, they have around 40 e-book titles for sale, available in ePub, MOBI and PDF formats, all included in a single Zip download. They have beautifully crafted cover images and are heavily discounted compared to their paperback counterparts.

"Hex Publishers is an independent publishing house proudly specializing in genre fiction: horror, science fiction, crime, dark fantasy, comics, and any other form that explores the imagination. Founded by writers, Hex values both the author and the reader, with an emphasis on quality, diversity, and voices often overlooked by the mainstream."

With only a few titles for sale, Hex Publishers made a name for themselves with their CyberWorld anthology.

Books by the late US author Jack Vance range from science fiction to mystery, and from a variety of pen names.

A lot of work has gone in to producing these digital titles, but they are only available to buy from the US. However, if you're located in the US and want to get hold of this legendary author's work, this site is for you. Many of the books also have new cover art.

As I mentioned earlier, these are not the only places to buy science fiction e-books that I know of, but they are ones that concentrate on that genre. Take a look at their wares and see if you find a publisher you love. Buy from them direct, if you can, to ensure the author gets a bigger cut, and we readers continue to enjoy our groundbreaking science fiction.

Next Week

In next week's Discover Indie Bookshops, we'll take a closer look at Crime bookshops. Now there's a genre with some interesting stuff going on. In the dark. Behind closed doors. With knives...

Keep up-to-date with these weekly posts by subscribing to the Libreture newsletter. As well as receiving Discover Indie Bookshop posts direct to your inbox, you'll be informed about all the latest DRM-free e-book news, latest new features, and how to make the most of your e-book collection. Join in!